Ranks of Unseen, Unemployed ‘SNEPs’ Growing

By Yoko Masuda

First there were “Freeters,” then there were “NEETs.” Now, here come the “SNEPs.”

No, these aren’t the youthful followers of the latest trends who flock to the Tokyo fashion meccas of Shibuya and Harajuku on weekends.

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Men loiter in front of a graffiti-covered wall in Osaka in March 17, 2009.

Rather, they are the growing numbers of working-age people who are unemployed, underemployed or socially isolated. While all of these categories seem to be expanding, in an especially disturbing development, a recent study by the University of Tokyo found there were 1.62 million people who were both out of work and who had little contact with people outside their families in 2011. That was about 60% of the 2.56 million single unemployed people in the country.

The number of “solitary non-employed persons,” or “SNEPs,” has risen steadily from 800,000 in 2001 and 1.12 million in 2006.

The study, led by University of Tokyo researcher Yuji Genda, analyzed data from a survey taken every five years by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, taking a random sample of two days of activity among non-employed singles between the ages of 20 and 59.

SNEPs were defined as those who didn’t associate with anyone outside their families during those two days. The study warns that their growing numbers will increase social welfare costs and be a great burden on society.

The term SNEPs is an addition to the family of terms for people without full-time jobs. “NEETs” are those between the ages of 15 and 34 “not in education, employment, or training,” who aren’t actively looking for jobs (excluding full-time housewives), and who therefore aren’t considered part of the workforce.

“Freeters” are those in the same age group who aren’t fully employed, but who make a living through various part-time jobs.

In 2011, the number of NEETs was 600,000 and that of Freeters was 1.76 million.

While such terms refer to younger people, in recent years the number of unemployed men in their 30s, 40s and 50s has also been rising. Between 2005 and 2012 the unemployment rate for men in the 45-54 age bracket grew to 3.5% from 3.1%, and for those aged 55-64 to 5.0% from 4.2%. In 2012, the overall unemployment rate was 4.3%.

The government has been implementing programs such the Young People’s Independence and Challenge Plan to combat the rising numbers of NEETs and Freeters. However, Mr. Genda stresses that more intensive outreach programs and policies are needed to get the unemployed get off social welfare and into jobs.

“Isolated people tend to lose the will to find a job. Even if their families can support them now, they will end up in a financial bind in the future,” Mr. Genda told the Mainichi Shimbun.

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